Healing Is A Process
by Sophie Ranier
Summary: Its been five years since the event that changed everything. And they went to extreme measures to never see each other again. But fate had something else in store for them. Can they learn to let go of their tragic past and let time heal? Tiva. McAbby.
1. Oh Dear

**Warning: This story has a grim basis, but justice and hope will prevail!**

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_"It has been said 'time heals all wounds. I do not agree. The wounds remain. In time, the mind, protecting its sanity, covers them with scar tissue and the pain lessens. But it is never gone." _

_-Rose Kennedy_

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A simple butter knife would never be able to cut through the tension filing autopsy. You would need something life a steak knife,

Or a chainsaw.

With the three former agents and one former forensic scientist spread out in the four corners of the morgue the silence couldn't be heavier. And the aging Medical Examiner could do nothing but stand in the middle of this.

Eye contact was avoided at all cost. They couldn't even steal a glance at each other without seeing the broken and bloody images of their friends that had so well stained their nightmares.

Ducky was speechless. Although he had not endured the tragic event that left them this way, he had helped them through the ineffective therapy sessions. He knew they hadn't seen each other in years, five to be exact. He was only expecting Ziva, he had given up hearing from them after Abby left, the last one to go. But when Ziva called to come over for the holidays, he had been more than welcoming . Once Abby's eyes fell upon Ziva's, Ducky's stomach had begun to churn. And when McGee and then Tony showed up, also unexpectedly, he knew the storm was upon them.

Abby stood closest to the automatic doors biting her inner lip and she blinked back the tears that were blurring her vision. Her hand tightened slightly around the hand of the five year old clinging to her side . Even the young raven haired child knew something was hinky and declined to ask her mother about these strangers.

Near the bathroom door stood McGee. His hands were dropped awkwardly at his side and he longed for the touch of his keyboard or the diamond ring he had put on Rebecca's finger just days ago. He wasn't expecting this, and he definitely wasn't going to expect what was to come.

Tony stood by the hallway entrance. The last to enter, he had immediately regretted letting Nina drag him back to Washington and when he saw his three formers co workers, his heart almost stopped. He, like all of them, couldn't even look straight at any of the others without seeing their tortured selves. He had stolen a short glance towards Ziva and even though she was in the best shape of her life and may have gotten more beautiful than he thought she was long ago, his memories of that dreaded few days filled his head and he couldn't bring himself to look at her again.

Ziva knew this was not going to be the simple get together with Ducky she had planned it to be the moment she saw Abby and the small child by her side as she entered autopsy. When Tim and Tony entered her heart broke. She had longed for them to be a team once again but even the strongest member of the MCRT couldn't get the tortured images of her friends out of her mind. The closest she had come to any of them was occasionally bringing herself to breeze through Tony's columns and forcing herself to read _Dark Blue_, even though she couldn't take any more of Thom E. Gemcity's words after the first chapter.

The tension was rising with every passing second, they had tried so hard to get over the physical and emotional effects of the event but even the strong bond of friendship could not erase the helpless, tortures, bloodied, and broken images of the other three, and for the first few months, the haunting images of themselves.

This meeting was not planned, nor was it supposed to happen. They did all they could to leave their tragic past behind and start over, moving to new cities, getting new jobs, and meeting new people. But fate had something different in store for them.

The shocked and awkward former NCIS agents and employee stood in the morgue, still avoiding eye contact and running dozens of excuses through their minds in hopes of getting out of there. But somewhere deep down inside, they wanted to stop this, they wanted to be normal again, they wanted to be friends again, but they had given up hope on that too long ago.

A few moments had passed, although it had felt like a lifetime for the six people in the morgue. Ducky, who's eyes had flickered from each person to the other examining their every awkward movement and nervous demeanor, had opened his mouth in shock and dread, turning to Palmer and uttered the only words and/or sound that had been heard since Abby watched Ziva enter autopsy.

"Oh dear."

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**Just a prologue, but it is intriguing isn't it ^.-?**

**So tell me what the hell you think is going on!**

**I probably wont update this for a while, but that shouldn't stop you from reviewing! There are still a few tweaks I need to work out.**


	2. Forensics As A Second Language

**2 Days Ago: New Orleans**

"Hurry! Its raining!" a young raven-haired child squealed, hopping off the last step of the old yellow school bus and splashing her ladybug rain boots into the puddle that awaited them when she landed.

Bolting for the front porch where her mother and aunt were waiting for her, she could feel her older cousin closing in behind her. He swatted her pigtail playfully as he passed by her and made it to the stairs only a second before her, pouncing on the two steps and landing a bit clumsily onto the porch. He turned around to be met by his younger cousin hopping up the stairs and brushing past him to meet her mother's embrace.

"Finally!" the five year old practically fell into her mom's arms. "Last day of school."

Abby laughed, placing a kiss on her daughter's forehead. "Only for two weeks, then winter vacation is over." she reminded her, taking off the paper Christmas themed crown she was wearing on her head. "You make this at school?" she questioned as she admired the glitter stars scattered randomly on the crown.

"Yep!" five year old Felicity exclaimed. "It's my Christmas crown." The little girl's raven black hair was tied into two perfect pigtails and her bright green eyes were alert as ever. Her crooked smile matched her mother, but she had her father's long, thin nose, or so Abby assummed.

"Hurry up slow poke!" the boy called to his older sister, who was still in the middle of the path.

"Shut up Jay! Its not even raining that hard!" the eight year old yelled as she kept her pace.

Jason Sciuto turned to his mom, who sat on the cushioned whicker chair next to Abby, her sister-in-law. "Can I have a Pop-Tart?" he asked innocently.

"Well, hello to you too." Dina chuckled, running her hand through his soft brown hair. "Share a pack with Fee." she instructed him and watched a smile grow on her niece's face before they both entered the huge Ante bellum dwelling they called home.

"Hey mom, Aunt Abby." Ellie greeted as she walked up the stairs two by two.

"How was school?" her mom asked.

"We had a party." she replied simply.

"I know, I was the one that stayed up till midnight making 4 dozen cupcakes." Dina said sarcastically.

"And they were a huge success!" her eyes immediately lit up. "When's dad coming home?"

"Five. Just like every Friday." her mom said, picking up a magazine as Ellie opened the screen door. "Don't eat too much, he's bringing home-"

"Pizza! I know! _Just like every Friday_." she mimicked.

Dina rolled her eyes. "Five." she sighed towards Abby. "You are so lucky, such a great age." she put a hand to her bulging stomach.

"Jason just turned six." Abby reminded her. "And don't worry, you're gunna go through it all over again in just a few months." she chuckled.

"Don't remind me." Dina sighed, rubbing her hand across her stomach.

Abby sighed hard; listening to the light pitter patter of the rain calmed her. "You know, I heard the guy buying the house across the street is a single father." Dina sang as the silence began to bother her.

"Stop it!" Abby commanded.

"You need to meet someone!"

"No! No I don't!" Abby defended "Right now, Felicity is my only concern. And my students."

"I know, I know, you say that all the time. 'Felicity and Forensics as a Second Language are my life and I shall want nothing more.'" she mimicked.

"I don't sound like that!"

"But at least get some new _friends_."

"I have friends!" Abby shot back, twirling her low tied pigtail nervously. "Lots of friends."

"Really?" Abby nodded. "Who?" Dina questioned, eyebrow raised.

"You're my friend."

"Family doesn't count."

"Felicity."

"Daughters are family."

"My students."

She laughed. "Yes, cause I'm sure everyone there is a teacher's pet."

Abby tightened her mouth shut.

"You need to go out more, you used to go out every night! And have tons of friends!"

"And I still do!" she bit her inner lip. "I just don't see them much."

"More like never." she sighed.

"I can see my friends whenever I want!" Abby protested.

"Really?"

"Really."

"Then go."

"Go?" Abby could feel she didn't like where this was going.

"Christmas is not for another week. Why don't you take Fee up to DC for a few days. School's out, you're class's been out for a while. Go see a few of your friends, introduce them to Fee."

Abby stared at her, long and hard. "I don't know."

"I know its been hard…but Abs, its been _five_ years." concern filled her eyes and voice.

Abby looked to the ground. "I haven't told anyone about Fee." her face dropped, then met Dina's again. "How am I supposed to explain her."

"Are you're friends really that nosey?" she complained.

"Well they may wanna know about the five year old daughter I never told them about." she replied dryly.

Dina sighed with exasperation. "Tell them it was a one-night stand."

"And lie? To my friends? Never."

She was tired of Abby's excuses. "What about that Doctor at NCIS…the one with the bird name…Sparrow?"

"Ducky?" Abby corrected with an eye roll, she knew Dina knew the name, but she decided to humor her.

"Ducky! He knows. Once you tell him her age, he'll just put the pieces together."

Abby watched her sister-in-law for another moment. "I don't know." she said uneasily.

"Just a few days, you can take Fee to some of the museums, remember how she wanted to go to the Air and Space one. That's all she'd been talking about recently."

"I'll think about it." Abby said, getting up in an attempt to end the conversation.

"You better!" she called out.

And that's exactly what she did, because two days later, Abby was in Washington DC. A place she had sworn she'd never come back to. But her hormones were raging back then, and she was angry at everyone, and everything. The world wasn't fair back then.

But five years had passed, Abby, and Felicity, had grown.

She could gather up the strength and courage to see Ducky. She could look at Ducky with a straight face, not see a broken and shattered Ducky. But a kind, old, wise Ducky. The Ducky she missed and loved.

As she stood on the lawn of the Capitol building, hand gripped around Felicity's, she shivered. It was cold, a stinging cold, but with their winter coats zipped up and thick, knit scarves wrapped around their necks, they could bear it. It definitely wasn't the worst winter they Washington had seen.

She had promised she would take Felicity to the Smithsonian on Wednesday, it was Sunday.

She knew that. Those were facts.

What wasn't a fact, was the two days in-between.

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**I know this is a quick update, and you can expect Ziva's soon. But I'm still juggling like 3 wips…I was just in the mood.**

**Reviews are great, they are. I know its just a back story and a little boring, but review…please?**


	3. The American Dream

**See, told you guyses I'd be back soon, well, semi-soon.**

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**3 Days Ago: New York City**

She had been in this city 5 years, and yet every day, it gave her that same feeling:

_Amazement._

Yes, New York City never failed to amaze Ziva, good or bad. It was a magical city, filled with culture and characters.

Tel Aviv, Washington DC, two places she had called home, and now, Tribecca was her home. Her house, her friends, and her 'baby', as Antonio referred to it as, were all settled there.

Ziva had never seen herself here, practically a business woman. But her past life of violence was no more for her, she had seen and endured the height of evil, and her freshly warmed heart at the time, could bear it no more. After those few life changing days, she cringed at the sight of a bullet and was sick to her stomach at even the thought of a dead body. But that did not affect her inner ninja ways. If necessary, she could still beat the crap out of any creep lurking the alley ways of this magnificent city. And she put her talents to use in her 'baby'.

She was living the American Dream. Israeli born immigrant, new found citizen ship, a crushed life only to be rebuilt into a life of success and hope.

It was early, very early. But for Ziva, she was right on time. She woke up peacefully; it was her first full night's sleep in a while. The nightmares began an on-off pattern after a while and were merciful enough to stop haunting her every night's sleep like they used to.

Hopping in the shower, she let the warm water run down her scarred body. The water felt slightly colder over the dozen or so scars that took permanent residence on her arms, leg, and chest. Five years was enough for the scars to start to heal gently and allowed her to cover them up easily with some cover up and let her wear more revealing and comfortable clothes for work. But the damn scar on that started at the bottom of her right jaw line and reached to her shoulder blade had been too deep and severe to heal as well as the others. A car accident she would tell them, and no more questions were asked, and sometimes, she wished it had been a car accident.

She hated running with the rush; the nosy tourist and determined shoppers. Although it was hard to avoid any foot traffic in Tribecca, she found that it was its emptiest at five thirty in the morning.

Currently armed with only her backpack and blackberry, she donned her usual apparel of tight and simple black leggings, a colorful sports bra (light blue today), her crisp, white Puma sneakers, and her gray windbreaker. Because of the December chill that Father Winter brought to Manhattan, she added a thick scarf and bright orange jogging cap. And even after all these years, it still reminded her of Roy.

She jogged the three blocks to her deli. The only deli within walking distance that sold the LA Times. Grabbing that and a bagel with cream cheese for breakfast and sticking them both in her backpack and walked down the block to Z's.

To say she was proud of Z's would be an understatement.

The elite and exclusive fitness center she had started from scratch was her pride and joy, her life at the moment. With a half a dozen mirrored-walled rooms on the ground floor, Ziva took her spot as chief fitness trainer and kick-boxing instructor. And the full and state of the art equipped gym in the basement made Z's a growing national fitness center for celebrities all over New York.

Pushing the heavy glass door inwards, she was met with the fresh sent of crisp green apple that came from the warm lit candles decorating the first floor of three story center. And there was Antonio, at the front desk, earlier than her as always, Chi Tea and fruit cup waiting for her.

The perfectly in-shaped man sat at his desk as Z's receptionist and co-owner. Wearing his signature chiffon and pattern dress shirt, he adjusted the headset he was wearing as she walked towards his desk. Ziva smiled as his glossy bald head glowed in the light.

"Morning Antonio." She greeted as she came to his desk, picking up the mail he had set for her next to her tea.

"Good Morning Ziva." He chirped slipping her his signature small smile.

"How's Riley?" she asked slyly, taking out her bagel and setting it on the desk.

He was completely distracted by the high-carb circle of dough laying on his pure white and glass desk while he spoke. "He's fine…you're not going to eat _that_…are you?" his face twisted into one of disgust.

"That is what I was planning to…why?" she looked a bit confused.

"That…thing…it's just so full of fat and…" he shivered dramatically. "That's why I bought you this." He smiled delightfully, pushing the fruit cup closer to him.

"I am sorry, but I cannot get up every morning and cook one of Antonio's famous low fat B&E's." she chuckled innocently.

"You miss me don't you?" he asked her slyly, peering over the rims of his dark purple glasses.

She focused on him. "Maybe a lad."

"_Tad_, how long have you been in America again?" he joked quickly.

She sighed, giving him a gentle glare. "It just takes some time to get used to."

"Me moving out, or American idioms?" he teased.

She let loose a chuckle before she heard music coming from one of the five fitness rooms on that level. "Who's in this early?"

"Jamie. I don't know why though." he replied curiously.

"Oh, good." He shot her a look. "She is training the new instructor, Derrick. He is supposed to be in today before classes."

"Ooh." He sounded intrigued. "Is he cute?"

Ziva laughed. "He is straight, and you are taken." She reminded him, talking about his boyfriend, Riley, that he had moved in with not more than a week ago.

"I know. But just because there's a goalie, doesn't mean you can't score."

Ziva looked puzzled. "Would the goalie be the fact that Derrick is not gay?" she questioned.

He looked up at her in disbelief and shook his head quietly.

"Why do we need another instructor anyway?" he whined. "It's already too crowded here as it is."

"We have five instructors and only a handful of trainers. And you are just sore because it is more mail for you to sort out."

"Hey! Secretarial receptionist is not an easy job Miss David." He shot back in mock offense.

She let out a small chuckle. "And I need someone to fill in for me this week."

"This week? Why?" he questioned.

"I am taking a vacation, I did not tell you?" he shook his head. "I am visiting an old friend."

"You have _old_ friends?" he teased.

She smacked his arm playfully. "I have friends besides you and Jamie."

"Not many. Does this friend have a name?"

"Yes, he does." She said simply.

He stared at her for a moment. "Care to share?"

"No." she smiled.

"Ah! He's from your 'old life'. So I don't need to know." And that's what she loved about Antonio; He dropped things.

Looking down he said, "Your class is here." As half a dozen extremely fit women entered the building followed by two cameramen.

"Are those the people that are filming today? The midwives?" she asked quietly.

"Not in this country darling." He shook his head disappointingly. "Here, they're called _housewives_. The real housewives." He attempted to jog her memory. "Of New York City." But her face was still blank. "Just teach them and ignore the cameras." He said quickly.

…

"I still have my blankie from my childhood." Antonio blurted out as they walked down the busy street, arm-in-arm.

"Excuse me?" Ziva asked, both confused and hungry. Sticking those housewives in the same room was definitely not the brightest idea anyone could have and she had worked up quiet an appetite trying to calm them down and stop them from killing one another.

"I told you a secret, now you have to tell me one." He smiled at her, obviously loving his plan.

"Do I now?" he nodded. "I do not know what to say." She thought.

"Okay, then you can tell me why you buy the _LA Times_ every morning." His trap had been set.

"You want to know why I buy the newspaper?" she shot him a look.

"No. I want to know why you go two blocks out of your way and buy the _LA Times_." His eyes narrowed on her.

"I like to know what's going on in the world." She replied innocently, leading them into a small restaurant.

"Then buy the New York Times, we are in New York if you hadn't noticed, dollface." She rolled her eyes.

"Table for two." She told the maitre, who immediately lead them to a small table by a window, Ziva's favorite spot. They were given menus and ordered their drinks and lunch, both having come here almost every day for lunch and practically memorizing the menu over the years.

"And," he continued. This was one of the things she hated about him. Although he did drop most things, when he wanted to know something, he was going to rip it out of you. "You only read the movie reviews."

She played with her fork nervously. "I like movies." She said quietly.

"No you don't. It's the guy that writes them isn't it." He badgered, referring to the handsome picture that was always placed in the bottom corner of the articles. The dashing A. Dinozzo. His reviews were somewhat famous, but the A. Dinozzo himself, usually kept to, well, himself. He was known for arriving right on time to movie premiers in order to skip the red carpet. And that picture of him in the paper, with his charmingly goofy grin and perfectly combed to a messy perfection hair was one of the only pictures the public had of him.

She took a deep breath. "Don't be ashamed, he's hot."

"He is straight." She blurted, immediately regretting it.

"He is?"

"Well, I would assume so." She brushed it off.

He waited a minute. "So he is the reason why." He asked.

"Yes." She said simply. If he got his answer, there would be no more questions.

"And you know him?" he asked casually, slipping it in there.

She hesitated, catching herself before she said anything further. "No."

"You do!" he smiled victoriously. "He's from your 'old life' isn't he?"

She sighed; there was no getting out of this. "Yes." If she stuck with basic yes or no answers, he may stop.

"You used to date him didn't you?" she could tell her was having fun.

"No." she laughed at her own memories of Tony, the better times. "Never. He was just…a friend."

"And you're not going to tell me anything else because if you do you have to tell me why you don't talk anymore and that probably involves your scar." He knew her all too well.

She brushed the injury absently. "Yes." She said simply, quietly.

"Dropping it…now." He smiled at her as the waiter placed down their food.

And here she was now, in front of her old apartment. She had told Ducky she'd be there tomorrow. And she had planned to arrive a day early, she didn't know why though, she really hadn't a clue.

The strongest of the team, both mentally and physically, Ziva was able to heal quicker, but not fully. She had gathered up all the courage to see Ducky for the first time in years, although she had called him once or twice before hand.

Reading Tony's reviews were hard though, and breezing through another one of Gemcity's best sellers was close to impossible. But fighting through things had been her life story.

And her story was nowhere near complete.

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**Next Up, McGee. And you already know a smigde about Tony, so bonus!**

**Review! Please, It'll start to pick up soon, I promise**


	4. Maybe

**2 Days Earlier: Bethesda, Maryland**

_It was dark, too dark. _

_Silence wrapped around him, suffocating him. The fresh scars stung every time his sweat dripped into them._

_Then, he heard them; the slow, loud taps coming from his hard, flat shoes as he walked closer towards him. _

_He tried to keep his breathing steady, but the pain was too much to bear. He was paralyzed, but could still feel pain. _

_A stray of light caught the sharp knife held in his hand as he held it up in inspection before slowly bringing it to his shoulder._

_He could feel the sharp edges as he teased him with pain. And slowly, he let the knife sink deeper, deeper, dee-_

Tim woke up with a jolt, his breath raging and his palms and forehead damp with sweat.

He had a nightmare.

_The_ nightmare.

Rebecca had been woken up by him and she automatically put a gentle hand to his back. She was still a half asleep and her brain was just beginning to process what was going on. "Tim." She said his name as comfortingly as she could at, she glanced at the neon red digital letters on her bedside, 5:56 in the morning. Crap, they had to get up.

In four minutes the clock would blare its annoying ring informing them that they had to get up for work. So Rebecca took those four minutes to console her fiancé from his reoccurring nightmares.

"Timmy, love, it's okay." She wrapped her arms around his back and laid her head against the small of his neck as she waited for his breathing to steady.

His baggy eyes were confused as he rubbed his hand across his face. "How bad?" she mumbled softly into his back.

"Bad." he replied, steadying his breath.

"Wanna talk about it?" but she already knew the answer.

"No. It was the same as always." Rebecca nodded, kissing the back of his neck softly.

Tim had met the 30 year old computer graphics creator a little over 3 years ago. They had hit it off immediately and McGee soon realized he had never met anyone that made him feel like himself since Abby. Within the first year Rebecca had moved into Tim's apartment in Bethesda, his hometown.

And not two weeks ago McGee had specially ordered a Chinese food dinner and had asked the love of his life, for her hand in marriage.

_They sat at home, eating casually on the couch as Rebecca vented to McGee about her boss at work. And Tim listened intently, just like he always did. He loved listening to Becky; her words were soft and playful and she would flaunt her crooked smile whenever she laughed. And as she continued to inform Tim about the new changes her boss had been making she grabbed a fortune cookie. McGee could feel his heart skip a beat as she cracked it open. And he couldn't resist a smile as she stopped; realizing something hard had fallen into her hands._

_A diamond ring._

"_Tim." A mixture of surprise and love ran through her voice. _

_She unraveled the small piece of paper._

"_Will you marry me?"_

_She covered her mouth as she began to laugh and cry in happiness. McGee took the ring from her momentarily and held her hand gently. "Becky I love you. And I wanna be with you forever." He told her slowly, his voice shaking but his words loving. "Will you marry me?"_

_She kept her eyes on him, her mouth still covered and short, nervously joyful laughs slipping every few moments. _

_He was shaking, she was shaking. His hand gripped hers harder and she returned the strength. _

_She nodded. "Yes."_

The alarm blared, right on time. McGee jumped, startling Rebecca as well. He put his hand on his chest, attempting to calm his heart while Becky reached over and slammed the alarm clock, shutting it off and returning to the comfort of McGee.

With her arms firmly around his back she could tell he was still shaking. "You sure you don't wanna talk about it?" she tried again.

"I'm fine." He lied absently.

She kissed his shoulder blade. "C'mon, maybe some breakfast will calm you down." She slipped around him putting herself in front of him. He was staring deeply into the carpet.

Becky let out a sigh. Placing her hands on either side of his face she directed it so he was looking right into her sky blue eyes. "Sorry." He mumbled. "I just-"

"Tim, love, you can't keep living like this." She sounded concerned, and she was.

She rubbed her hand gently along the scar on his bare chest. "I think it's time to heal, see these people again, talk to them. Maybe healing together will be easier."

"Okay, you're done going to that psychic woman." He breathed. But she could feel the joking in his voice.

"Madame Lillian is not a psychic." He narrowed his eyes on her. "She's a spiritual cleanser and maybe she's right in this situation."

"Becky, I can't take a chance with _maybe_." He said hardly, but she didn't realize her arms from around his neck. "I don't know if I can go through that again."

"You don't have to go through that again. You just need to reconnect with your friends." She brushed a hand down his cheek.

"Becky." He looked at her harshly. "You don't understand. I can't _look_ at these people anymore."

"Love, that was five years ago." She sat on his leg as their conversation became more heated and passionate. "Time heals wounds." Her face was now dangerously close to his.

"Really?" he asked with sarcasm. He took her hands and pressed them to each of the scars that decorated his body. "You said it yourself. It's been _five years_. They're all still here."

She watched him softly, sadness lingered on her face. He held her hands loosely in his. She searched his face, but found nothing.

"Can you just _try_? For us?" she intertwined her fingers in his and lifted them so eye level. The diamond glistened in the light slipping through the blinds.

His face softened. He found love in her eyes, concern and care. He found the eyes he fell in love with.

"Maybe." He let a smile tug at her lips.

A chuckled slipped out before she kissed him softly. "C'mon. We're gunna be late." She got up, pulling him with her.

He followed her into the kitchen and she took out two boxes of cereal. "What happened to the feel-better breakfast?" He sounded slightly disappointed.

"I'll make you a feel-better dinner instead." She laughed as he took the milk out of the refrigerator.

…

"Now, are you gunna go through with this healing thing?" she asked, taking in a spoonful of cereal.

"Yea." He replied with a mouth full of Frosted Flakes.

"Perfect. Then clear your week." He looked up at her in confusion. "Tim, I know you still have a week of unused vacation."

He shook his head. "Beck, no, no, I-"

"You gave me your word. It'll be good. We'll go to Washington this week and we'll go see them." She said enthusiastically.

"Hon, it's not that simple. I haven't seen them in five years. I have no idea where they are, what they're doing."

Her face dropped. She put her hand on top of his. "Then let's take a vacation. We'll go to D.C." her eyes lit up. "I've never been to Washington, it'll be our first vacation as fiancés." And there was the Becky he knew, always looking on the bright side.

"Vacation?" he scoffed. "Washington's thirty minutes from here."

"So we'll make it a day trip, or a few days trip, please?" she pleaded with her best puppy dog face.

"Its Christmas time, love. And Mr. Luca wants Dragon Lords 2 on shelves before New Years and Jason and I still have so much to do. Level 3 still needs to be fully coded, half the cheats are missing-"

"Oh, shush mister hot shot." She smacked his hand playfully. "There's like twelve of you on that team, they can deal a week or so without you."

"I don't kn-"

"Yes you do." She said, transferring her confidence into her voice. "You know you want to see them."

"Beck, I don't even think they're still in Washington. I know Tony is in L.A, Ziva might be in New York." He usually picked up a copy of the LA Times before work and he had remembered reading an article on Z's somewhere online and although there was no picture, there were only so many Ziva David's in the world. "And I wouldn't even know where to look for Abby." He immediately felt a pang of guilt.

"Well there has to be someone that's still there." She asked hopefully.

He sighed, almost not wanting to answer the question. "Yea." He said quietly.

"Perfect! We leave Sunday." She said happily, getting out of her seat with a victorious grin.

"You're terrible." He laughed finishing up his breakfast.

"I love you too."

…

The adorable couple sat peacefully on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Rebecca's thin, light red hair spread across his shoulder as she laid her head against him. Their hands intertwined and he whispered a soft _I love you_ into her ear.

They were so in love.

He would be going to the Navy Yard alone, one day this week, he hadn't decided, but with the way Becky had been pestering him, it would be soon.

Little did he know, he wouldn't be deciding what day he would go.

Fate would.

* * *

**Like? **

**How's Becky? I'm very anal with my OCs. I like to make them so that you don't wanna crush your skull in every time they come up.**

**And don't pester me about McAbby, calm down, everything is going to work out. And for the record. McGee still writes, but his full time job is a Computer Graphics for like Video Games type job, I mean without his federal agent job, he doesn't have much inspiration. **

**Anyways, Tony's the last, he'll be here soon, I promise.**

**So review?**


	5. A Dinozzo

**2 Days Ago: Los Angeles, California**

Elle was nervous, to say the least.

Her first day as an intern hadn't started off as she had hoped. One missed alarm, two spilled coffees, three extra blocks in heels, and four gusts of wind messing up her hair. It was as if God had made some kind of sick play, using her as his puppet.

"Stop worrying Elle." The voice that penetrated her overwhelmed brain was one of comfort, one of her best friend Stacy.

She turned to face Stacy, her friend's hand lay absently over her bulging stomach that Elle had learned to ignore. "Sorry." She shook her head. "I'm just really nervous."

"I told you, there is _nothing_ to worry about. I won't be gone long." The full Irish and proud redhead gave her a genuine smile. "Mr. Dinozzo is not as intimidating as people think."

Yes, A. Dinozzo was quite notorious in LA, much to his discontent. He kept a low profile, but his reviews were a big deal. No man on the planet could go into such detail and relate it to so many other movies, really digging into what the writers, directors, and actors were trying to portray.

"I know. It's just…well you know me and jobs. I was never really good at holding down one." she admitted, biting her lower lip.

"You're gunna be fine Elle, Mr. Dinozzo is a very admirable boss." She gave her friend a comforting pat on the shoulder. "Good morning Mr. Dinozzo." she sang, not having to turn around when she heard the automatic doors slide open.

Right on time, just like always.

"Morning Stacy." He shot her his signature smile.

She handed him his large cup of coffee as he passed. "Tonight's the big _The Last Airbender 3_ premier." she reminded him quickly.

He let out an annoyed sigh. "Hated the first one, hated the second one-"

"The people are still expecting a review." she interrupted quickly. "And don't worry, it's the last one."

He returned a smile and looked to Elle, flashing a toothy smile for her. "So this is my new Andrea Sachs for the next few months?" he put out a hand for her.

Elle shook it pleasantly, still charmed by his smile. "This is Elle Greenaway. I told you about her, she'll be taking over for me while I'm on maternity leave." Stacy explained.

"Yea, I remember. I've got the memory of an elephant."

"And the roar of one." Stacy teased.

"It's such an honor to be working under you, well not under you, with you…um, well as your assistant." Elle stuttered.

Tony let out a gentle laugh. "Well I hope you're as good as Stacy says you are, I'm a very demanding person."

"Stop!" she hit him lightly with a folder. "No he's not." she assured Elle. "Now go!" she pointed him towards his office. "Mr. Reid is expecting _King Star's_ review by this afternoon. And Ellen wants an over the phone interview on Wednesday if that's possible!" she called as he wandered to his office, answering her with a simple thumbs up.

"Why won't he do a live interview?" Elle asked in a hushed tone. "It's not like he's ashamed of his looks."

"I don't know, Elle." Stacy sighed. "I really don't know."

* * *

**Later that Night: Tony's Condo Complex**

"Hola Anthony." A thick Spanish accent greeted him as he reached in his pocket for his keys.

He turned around, meeting his beautiful Chilean neighbor and friend (with benefits) leaning on her doorframe across the hall from his, her thick black hair lying softly on her shoulders.

"Nina." He greeted her with a smile, turning around to meet her crisp, dark blue eyes.

"I hear you have a premier tonight." She bit her lower lip flirtatiously. "Who are you taking? Sasha? Angela?"

"If she can be ready by seven thirty, then I'm escorting the beautiful Miss. Nina Diaz." he laughed, opening the door to his condo.

"Maybe I could come over at seven for a little…pre-party?" she twirled a curl in between her fingers.

"I guess we can afford to be fashionably late."

* * *

**The Next Morning**

Nina definitely didn't mind waking up in Tony's arms once in a while.

Her Anthony was such a gentle man on the inside, despite his stereotypical bachelor look on the outside. She brushed a hand slowly over his bare chest, feeling the roughness of the scars randomly scattered across his body. A soft moan escaped his lips as he began to wake up, Nina half sleeping in his arms.

"Buenos Dias." she whispered softly into his neck, her warm breath bouncing off his skin.

"Good morning beautiful." he kissed her hair gingerly. "I thought you were going for a run." he questioned, eyes still adjusting to the light slipping through the windows.

"I decided to skip the run this morning, I counted last night as enough exercise for the day." she shot a smirk towards him.

He let out a chuckle "Excuse me?"

"You are not the lightest person I have slept with." Her lips were dangerously close to the bottom of his chin.

"Hey, a few doughnuts here and there never did any harm." He pushed her on top of him, cupping her face in his hands.

"Mmhmm." she hummed patting his stomach playfully. She lay her head down on his chest, closing her eyes.

Her weight on him was comforting. He loved the way her hair fanned out across his chest, the ends ticking his neck.

"Let's go to New York." Her suggestion was random and earned her a chuckle from Tony. She felt the roar of his chest against her own.

"Let's not. It's too crowded during the holidays." he whined, stroking her hair lightly.

"We should go _somewhere_." she huffed.

Suddenly, a gasp escaped her naturally rosy red lips. "Washington! You know I've always wanted to go there!" she picked her head up, facing him. "Please?" her Spanish accent was irresistible.

"Not Washington." He spoke quickly and confidentially; his eyes were still shut.

"Why not?" she pleaded until he opened his eyes.

"I used to live in Washington, believe me, you don't wanna got there during Christmas."

"Do I want to go anywhere during Christmas?" she asked sarcastically. She paused for a minute, realizing something. "You never told me you lived in Washington."

"Only a few years. Eight or so…" he slipped out nonchalantly.

"Ocho? That's a lot! Come on, please, Anthony! My American History teacher said I should do to Washington." Tony smirked. "The Jefferson Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial, the White House, Anthony I have never seen any of them before." Nina really just wanted to show off her new American History knowledge since taking night school college courses over the summer.

Tony shook his head, still unsure. "I don't-"

"And you must have friends there. Eight years! Do not tell me you were a shut out in Washington too."

"Shut _in_." he corrected automatically.

"Did you correct people's grammar there too?" she asked annoyingly.

"Nina." He brushed his thumb lightly down her neck.

"No!" she rolled off of him, her feet hitting the hardwood floor before spinning around to meet him again. "We are going." She pursued her lips.

"Oh are we?" he chuckled.

"Yes, we are." She turned towards his closet, eyeing a few sweaters and pants.

"What are you doing?" he let out a sigh.

"Packing." She said simply, grabbing a few sweaters off the top shelf. "We are leaving tomorrow. I hope you like turtlenecks, I hear there are cold winters in Washington."

* * *

And now here they were, at the Ronald Reagan Washington airport, Nina clinging onto Tony as they walked outside, catching a cab. He held her close to him as she admired the silhouette of Washington. He pointed out the monuments while she took as many pictures as she could.

He drove past the Navy yard twice, just so it was in eyeshot. He figured he could pay Ducky a visit sometime this week.

But he didn't figure it would be a lot more than just a visit.

* * *

**unfortunatly i wont be updating this story for a while, now that they're all here, there are just a few tweeks i need to work out**

**But review!**


	6. To Run

_*takes place almost immediately after the first chapter.*_

**Present Time: Navy Yard**

Tony slams the car door; gripping the steering wheel tight he takes a few deep breaths before smacking the top of the wheel with his palm.

"I guess that did not go as planned." Nina sighs from the passenger's seat, not flinching.

"This is my fault, I should have..." he takes a deep breath inward, rubbing his hands on his face. "Done everything. I'm left to do one simple thing and I screw it up." he shakes his head in disappointment.

"Anthony." she puts a hand on his shoulder softly. "What the hell happened?"

He takes another breath before turning toward her, his sad eyes meeting her concerned ones. He shakes his head solemnly. "Just...something bad. Really, really bad."

His eyes turn back to the front of the car and what they catch makes his heart skip a beat.

There she is. Ziva. He can tell by her graceful strides that she is trying to get to her car as fast as possible without sprinting. His eyes follow her until she walks behind a row of cars. He hopes Nina doesn't notice but his luck runs short.

"You know her?" she asks sharply.

"No." he lies.

"Anthony." she says sternly, reminding him too much of his mother. "You never look at a girl like that."

She shakes her own head and unlocks the car door, climbing out.

"Nina! What the hell are you doing?" he calls after her, but she is already jogging towards the cars Ziva disappeared behind. Before she can reach the end of the first car, a bright red Mini Cooper speeds past her, nearly running her over in the process.

Although he can't hear her, he knows all too well the many curses she mumbling in Spanish under her breath.

Nina enters the car with a huff, crossing her arms in front of her chest and stares out the window, catching the red car pull up to to security gate. "Well she was no help."

"Yea, you don't wanna get in _her_ way."

"So you _do_ know her?"

He sighs.

The car is silent for a moment, the only audible sound is Nina's knuckles tapping gently on the car window.

"Are we going to stay the rest of the week?" she asks hesitantly.

He blinks a few times before taking a breath. "We already checked in, why not?"

* * *

"That was fast." Rebecca stated as her fiance happened in the passenger's seat. "I thought you'd at least grab lunch or something."

"Yea...didn't go as planned." he said fastening his seatbelt.

She watched him for a moment. "You wanna talk about it?"

"No." he just wanted to get as far away from here as he could right now, preferably back to his warm, safe bed with Becky tucked into his arms. "Can we just...go...?" he asked, staring out the window.

Her eyes lingered for another second and she took a breath. She was completely concerned for Tim and although there was a lot he opened up to her about, she always felt like there was a piece of him she knew nothing about.

"Where to?" she reached out and held his hand. Her touch brought him back to reality. He smiled and kissed her fingertips.

"Lunch."

* * *

She ran.

Cursing to herself as she stepped out the doors of the office building.

Ziva hated herself for acting this cowardly, but she could feel her scars start to sting and her head to heat up. Sweat beads lingered on her skin and she could feel the bruises that were already healed. She needed to get out of there. She couldn't see them the same way.

She made it to her car and without a second thought, sped out of the parking complex, nearly hitting a woman in the process.

She reached her hotel in record speed and headed for her room, skipping past the elevator and taking the steps two by two.

The adrenaline rush calmed her.

* * *

Abby stood at the door of autopsy, hand still holding on tightly to her daughter's. Her eyes were locked onto the floor and stinging with tears.

She thought of the irony that surround this. Left alone once again, too surprised and confused and hardly over the aftermath to leave. She didn't know anything besides NCIS; she didn't know where to go, who to go to. They left her in a dazed state, one by one they walked out on her. She was left alone to recover alone. And she had practically crumbled at the sight of the little pink plus sign.

Ducky walked slowly over to her, embracing her in a hug. She let her tears fall at his touch. She didn't care that his scrubs wrecked of death, it was a familiar smell and she needed familiar right now.

Palmer followed Ducky and bent down to eye level with Felicity, who despite staying quite, looked completely scared and confused. "Hey." he whispered, giving her a friendly smile.

She paused, looking at him for a second before biting her lip.

"I have some crayons at my desk, wanna go color?" he whispered.

Giving him an innocent look, she shrugged. "My mom says I'm not allowed to talk to strangers." Despite the tears and shaking, Abby's hand still gripped Felicity's tightly.

Palmer gave her an understanding smile. "I'm...and old friend of your mom's. Its okay, we're not going far, just over there." he turned and pointed over towards his desk just a few feet away. He was terrible with authority figures, but he had a way with kids, and three daughter's was practice enough.

She looked up at her mom, hugged her leg, and took Palmer's hand. Leading her over to his desk, he took out the spare crayons and paper he kept for the occasional take your daughter to work day.

Ducky sat Abby down on the chair once her shaking had started to cease. Her head hung low as she wiped tears from her cheeks. But after a few minutes, she began to calm, and realized that she was so distracted she hadn't remembered letting go of her daughter's hand. Her panic was short lived though when she spotted her at the far end desk Palmer next to her, handing her crayons.

"I shouldn't have brought Fee. Maybe it freaked them out." she said in a low voice.

"Abigail dear, you cannot blame yourself." he wasn't even going to touch on who Fee's father was, because if his suspicions were correct, it might just send her into another state of hysterics. "You four have a lot of healing to do...together."

* * *

**I'd say that was a pretty decent chapter as far as words, Its a little over 1000.**

**Sorry for the lack of update, I'm working on that:P**

**So its just a filler chapter, but things are going to start to pick up. **

**Review? Perhaps favorite line if you have the time.**


	7. Before the Storm

"What happened back there?"

Rebecca waited until the waitress took their menus away to speak. Tim was distracting himself with the paper straw wrapper, ripping it into tiny pieces and putting them into a small pile with his finger.

"They were all there." he said after a moment. He took a deep breath. "I wasn't expecting them. And vice versa."

"You think they all planned to meet up and didn't include you?"

Tim shook his head. "No. I don't think anyone was expecting anyone."

Rebecca's eyes lit up. "That's one hell of a coincidence."

"No such thing." he whispered to himself, eyes and fingers still fixated on the pile of scrap paper in front of him.

* * *

Ziva quickly tied her damp curls into a bun, stuffing it in her bright orange beanie as she dared the crisp winds of Washington. Finding a hot dog vendor she ordered a tall cup of hot chocolate and sat at a nearby bench, watching a class of young middle schoolers walk one by one into the Air and Space Museum.

The image of Tony's face was the one she kept replaying over and over in her head. Their eyes has only met for a brief second and yet she had all of his new, older features memorized. His face was wider, and his skin not as tight. His eyes were less lively and he had more of a slouch to his demeanor. She hadn't notice she was lightly tracing her scar as she remembered his face.

The child in Abby's hands also scarred her. Where she came from and how much of her best friends life she had missed. Had Abby moved on with her life by now? Why hadn't she been able to yet?

She felt a hot tear escape her eye as she finally thought of Tim. She removed her hand from her scar to wipe it away. Her dreams of him used to be playful and funny, now they were heart-wrenching, ripping her out of her slumber in a mess of sweat and tears.

Her heart beat in her throat as she mentally relived her dreams, and when she looked down the path of the mall, her heart skipped a beat and she choked on the air she inhaled.

* * *

"She's four and a half."

Abby words penetrated the air as Ducky sipped his tea; Abby had declined a cup. "Felicity, thats her name." Abby's eyes focus past Ducky, to her daughter. "She was the only thing good to come out of that." she shook her head absently. "By far."

She inhaled sharply, her hands were shaking. "You're awfully quiet." she looks up at Ducky, trying to change the subject.

"Just processing the events of the last few minutes." He revealed a ghost of smile. "But it is good you are all here. I believe something good will come out of this visit." Abby nodded with unsure eyes. "Where are you living now?" He finally obeyed to her wish of putting her mind in another place.

She smiled.

* * *

"Tony, can you slow down?" Nina called back from a three steps behind.

It wasn't until he realized how sharp of a stop he had to make to turn around that he noticed how fast he was going. She quickly caught up to him, her heels dug into the gravel as she looped her arm in his and attempted to walk at his pace. Her legs were forced to step out further than comfortable for this to happen.

"Can we just go back to the room, order something to eat, I could give you a message." She tried her best sultry voice at the last suggestion.

"You can go back, I just need to walk."

She stopped short, jerking him back with her. "Okay. I can see you want to be alone. And I respect that. So I am going to walk back to the Capitol building, one of the tourist with those franny packs-"

"_Fanny_ packs."

"Take a picture of me in front of it so I can tweet it. Then I am going to take a taxi back to the hotel and order some wine. Call me when you get in the car to come back, I will order another bottle."

She reached her hand up to his cheek, patting him lightly. "Are we clear?"

"Crystal."

"No. _Clear_?"

Tony let out a heavy sigh. "Yes." He take a hard turn, continuing on his path. He passes a hot dog vendor and as his eyes traveled to the outside of the Air and Space museum he swore he caught a glimpse of traffic cone orange somewhere in the crowd.

* * *

**Wow, long time no write.**

**So as you can probably tell, this story is really going to pick up next chapter**

**Or is it?**

**No don't worry it is.**

**Or am I lying?**

**No, seriously it will.**


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